Rhino Entertainment has just released Jethro Tull's Still Living In The Past, which updates the band's original 1972 album issue in every possible way. Still Living In The Past is being released as a gatefold double LP edition, as well as an expansive 5-CD+Bluray package, all remixed and remastered by Steven Wilson. The 2-LP set basically replicates the original LP release, while the CD/BD package gives you the original mix of the original issue; the Steven Wilson remixes; another disc of demos, outtakes, and rare tracks; 2 CDs that present the band live at Carnegie Hall in 1970; and the Bluray disc that gives you everything on the CDs, in 24/96 sound quality, plus 5.1 surround mixes of the album tracks and the Carnegie Hall concert. As well as a handful of rare video clips. It's a surprisingly comprehensive package that was produced by none other than Ian Anderson.
As with many UK bands, Jethro Tull recorded a fairly copious number of non-album singles in their early days, that were often released in mono sound; also, there was a certain propensity among record labels on both sides of the pond to issue the same album with differing track lists. Which tended to leave both UK and US Tull fans in the lurch; Living In The Past was originally conceived as a way to update fans to new and improved stereo mixes of many of the tracks originally only issued as singles, as well as including fan favorites, rarities, and previously unreleased tracks, especially live concert recordings. Living In The Past was never intended to be a "greatest hits" package—well, maybe—sort of? But for reasons unknown, the UK and US versions of the album intended to give everyone better mixes of much of the material also arrived on both shores with differing track lists. Jethro Tull was no exception to the madness here, it's been like this for decades, for just about every band and record label.
Jethro Tull, Still Living In The Past, (2) 140 gram LPs, $39.98; (5) CDs + BD, $89.98
Still Living In The Past rectifies that situation—especially on LP—where now, worldwide, everyone is finally getting exactly the same track list, with everything touched by the miraculous hands of Steven Wilson. I received the 2-LP set and digital downloads for the CD/BD set, and while the pair of LPs offers a lot to digest—the digital disc set sprawls across its five CDs and BD disc, with a level of rarities, remastered or remixed, and live tracks that's staggering in scope, even for die-hard Jethro Tull fans. The original LP has been in regular rotation here for years, but Rhino's new reissue absolutely smokes it—the sound quality of the recordings is beyond belief in comparison, and Steven Wilson's excellent work really shines here.¹ There's a significantly increased level of clarity on all the tracks, which were a tad muddy on the original. I always enjoyed the eclectic mix of tracks on Living In The Past, but Steven Wilson's Still Living In The Past is a masterpiece of recorded sound that has lifted my level of enjoyment infinitely.
While the tracklist changes on the original LP release are fairly nominal, Still Living In The Past gives you everything. On the US version of Living In The Past, side two included the track "Alive and Well and Living In" from the UK version of the album Benefit; the US version of the album was missing it, so it was great to have. The song replacing it on the UK version was "Inside," but hearing both songs on the same side of Still Living In The Past really improves the music's flow for me. On side four of the original release, the US version got "Hymn 43" from the album Aqualung, while the UK version got "Locomotive Breath" from the same album. Rhino's new reissue gives you both tracks—that pushes the total time of side four to 25 minutes, but that's within the comfort zone, so no problems. And as with side two, I love how the new reissue flows!
The double LP set arrived in a nice gatefold jacket that replicates the front cover "look" of the original, but that's about as far as it goes. The jacket itself lacks the heavy, leatherette appearance of the original, and it's also missing the original's bound-in booklet that was filled with lots of large-format photos of the band. The new jacket uses much lighter weight stock, and the leatherette is only imaged on the cover. That said, most of the photos from the original are presented in a montage across the inner spread of the gatefold, and a multi-page booklet that came inserted in one of the album pockets contains many more pictures and bits of memorabilia. As well as a lengthy essay by Martin Webb with plenty of commentary from Ian Anderson, who basically walks you through the changing dynamic going on within the group at the time of Living In The Past's original release. The LPs were half-speed mastered by Barry Grint at AIR Studios in London, and were inserted into inner sleeves that were printed facsimiles of the master tape cartons.
In terms of the digital disc version, the level of content is massive, to say the least. The very positive upside to everything is that it all benefits from Steven Wilson's touch, and the sound quality is so much better than I might have imagined it would be! That's especially true of the Carnegie Hall complete concert, which gives you prime Jethro Tull from the period covering the albums Stand Up, Benefit, and Aqualung (with the exception here of bassist Jeffrey Hammond-Hammond, who replaced Glenn Cornick as the sessions proceeded). Ian Anderson's spoken intros are entertaining, and the live sound is among the best I've ever heard for concert tapes from the early 1970's. And the Bluray disc gives you all this in 24-bit/96kHz high resolution digital (and 5.1 surround, if you have the capability), so it doesn't get much better—this is a really great sounding set, whether analog or digital!
Do you need Still Living In The Past?
Yes, absolutely, and if for no other reason, for Steven Wilson's superb new remixes and remasters. The CD/BD set is a complete no-brainer, and even at nearly $90, the level of fanboy desirability tips the scales towards a definite Yes. I play both LPs and high-res digital in my systems, so my sweet spot is fairly broad, and while I drifted toward the LPs, I still love the abundance of extras available on the digital disc set. The sound of the LPs is superb—they were pressed by Optimal, in Germany, which usually means they'd be golden—but my LP set had a few nagging ticks and pops here and there. I'm all-in on analog, warts and all, and the otherwise superb sound of the LPs lifted my enjoyment above the ordinary, so it's all good!
Still Living In The Past comes highly recommended, regardless of which playback direction you take. It's an often nostalgic journey down the rabbit-hole of Jethro Tull non-album tracks, curiosities, and alternate takes. Many thanks to Miranda Alston of Warner Music Group and Rhino for all her assistance with this review. Go ahead, grab your credit card, you won't regret it!
Rhino Entertainment
All images courtesy of Rhino Entertainment and the author.
¹ I'm constantly astonished by what an amazing artist Steven Wilson is in his own right, and with his own band Porcupine Tree, but the remix/remaster work he's graced us with on the catalogs of Jethro Tull, Yes, King Crimson, and XTC (to name a few), has lifted my appreciation for his craft to the nth level!
